NTT DoCoMo Inc. (9437.TO) and Softbank Corp. (9984.TO) Thursday reported fiscal first quarter results that contrasted each other, as DoCoMo saw its profit drop on shrinking per-user revenue while Softbank enjoyed gains on increased service fees and handset sales.

NTT DoCoMo, Japan's No. 1 cellphone carrier with more than 50 million subscriptions, posted a 15% decline in its net profit to Y147.38 billion from Y173.51 billion a year earlier.

By contrast, Softbank's net profit for the April-June quarter jumped 41% to Y27.38 billion from Y19.37 billion in the same period a year earlier. It was much better than a consensus projection for a Y11.2 billion profit compiled by data provider Thomson Reuters from a survey of 13 analysts.

Boosted by the popularity of Apple Inc.'s (AAPL) iPhone, which it sells in Japan, Softbank said its overall handset sales increased in the April-June quarter at a time when most carriers are selling fewer handsets.

Softbank said brisk handset sales and increased service fees boosted its mobile phone segment earnings in the April-June quarter, putting the No. 3 carrier in a better position to take on bigger rivals DoCoMo and KDDI Corp. (9433.TO).

Softbank's operating profit climbed 27% to a record Y108.29 billion from Y85.09 billion a year earlier, helped by a 36% growth in the core mobile communication operations to Y60.2 billion. Revenue for the same quarter rose 2.9% to Y666.33 billion from Y647.26 billion.

Although its average monthly per-user revenue of Y4,030 for the quarter was down 3.5% from a year earlier, it improved significantly from Y3,830 in the January-March quarter.

On the other hand, an NTT DoCoMo spokesman said falling revenues from phonecall charges weighed on earnings. The company's average revenue per user dropped 7.6% to Y5,440 from Y5,890 a year earlier.

Handset sales were weak at DoCoMo, falling 12% on year, but the spokesman said the sales decline was mostly canceled out by smaller sales-related costs.

DoCoMo's group revenue fell 7.3% to Y1.085 trillion from Y1.170 trillion, while operating profit dropped 15% to 251.82 billion from Y294.49 billion.

-By Juro Osawa, Dow Jones Newswires; 813-5255-2929; juro.osawa@dowjones.com